Athenaeum Tour - Indianapolis

The Athenaeum, built in 1894 and 1898 as Das Deutsche Haus, remains true to the “sound mind in a sound body” ethos of its freethinker German founders. Author Kurt Vonnegut’s architect grandfather’s firm Vonnegut & Bohn designed the German gymnasium and clubhouse, which the author declared his favorite of all of his ancestor’s works. Anxious to preserve their culture, and accustomed to clubs, German-Americans created societies for music, recreation and social activity, political and philosophical discussion, theater, exercise, and more. The Athenaeum united all Indianapolis’s German clubs under one roof.

The tour explores the evolution of the building from a German clubhouse to a hub of modern urban life, with a theater, YMCA, and the Rathskeller, a restaurant/pub in continuous operation since the landmark’s earliest days. Tours are offered on select Sundays, May through November. In 2022, tours will depart at 1:45pm and 2pm.

2022 DATES
May 22
June 26
July 17
August 14
September 25
October 2
November 6

TICKETS
$10/person(age 12 & up); $5/child (age 6-11)
$8/Indiana Landmarks member; $4/child of Indiana Landmarks member (age 6-11)
Free for children ages 5 and under

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